Bullying

I recently watched a video done by the LDS church on bullying.  Growing up I was either immune or completely naive to the bullying that takes place in childhood and adolescence.  Sure I remember being picked on as a kid by my older siblings, and a few kids back in the 2nd grade but was for the most part harmless.  

There were two brothers that use to pick on me starting at age 9 who lived across the street.  They would tell me things like I ate too much, made fun of me about my looks and one time one of them even kicked me in the stomach while we were on the monkey bars.  My brother gave him a pink belly for that, but I don't remember the teasing and annoyances stopping until the spring after I turned 12.  I saw them all the time, but I think I was able to get over it because of my parents and their support.   Soon after my body changed and suddenly I wasn't a little girl anymore.  After that they left me alone, and the only teasing I received was from the older one who was friends with my sister.  He would always ask me when we were gonna go on a date.    It wasn't until I was older that I realized he was half joking, half serious.

I forget sometimes how severe bullying can be....some kids are bullied their whole lives.  I was recently listening on a conversation my Bishop's wife and my neighbor were having about the bullying going on in their children's class at school.  They mentioned one little boy who seems to be a major culprit and then started to lament on how bad they felt for him because of the rough childhood he has had.  I think it's great when parents can sometimes see both sides to things.  Some parents are ridiculous and even encourage it.  Furthermore, some just look the other way and say it's apart of life.  I recently saw this video done by Mormon Messages that brought tears to my eyes about bullying:

It reminded me about how difficult growing up can be, even when you are around those with high morals.  I realize that even as adults we can bully one another.  How many times have I found myself innocently gossiping about a neighbor, friend, or family member?   How many times have I heard that someone has judged or said something about me.......and allowed it to really bring me down.  Even as an adult I'm sensitive to what others do and say about me.  So the words in this video and actions there help me to want to be a little bit better each day towards my brothers and sisters.

Elizabeth Giometta

                          Elizabeth Witt Giometta 1924-2014

Grandma and my Dad.

This weekend we said goodbye to triple G (Great Grandma Giometta).  I thought she had a few years left, but her time had come.  Back in the beginning of January she fell somewhere in her assisted living residence.  She couldn't remember where, how, or even that it had happened at all.  She bruised up her face terribly that it was hard to look at her without feeling awful.  That was the last time I saw her lucid.

Grandma and Grandpa.  She always loved to dance even until she was in her late 80's.

After being moved to a nursing home for Alzheimer's patients not too long after her fall, she was moved to a full time assisted living home.  It wasn't long after that when she fell again and hurt her head.  Within a day or two she stopped eating, drinking, and opening her eyes.  Hospice care was called in that following Monday.  We came to see her Friday afternoon.  I wasn't sure if we would make in time to say goodbye.  Fortunately, she didn't pass until Saturday afternoon.  I couldn't believe how long she held out.  She truly was stubborn her whole life  even until the end.  My sister Julianna and my cousin Vanessa stayed with her all day Friday and through the night.  They left Saturday morning to go eat when my Mother arrived.  My Mom stayed with her but then decided to go fill out some paper work for a few minutes in the office.  While she was gone Boots decided to leave this life.  At first I felt bad hearing that people were staying by her side so that she didn't have to leave this life by herself, but then I realized that maybe she wanted to do it alone.  Everyone needs to go in their own way.  All week I've been reflecting on the amazing memories I had with her.  My Father was an only child so we were her only Grand kids.

Grandma at the Trevi fountain. 

So she was around us a lot.  If my parents couldn't pick me up from school, practice, piano lessons, etc., they called Grandma.  She was at every holiday and every important event in our lives, including talks and performances at church.  She wan't a member of our faith, but I know that my Father is teaching her the gospel in the spirit world and that her arrival was a joyous time for him and my Grandpa Tony.

In preparing for her passing I created a list of all the funny and important memories I have of her.

1. She always wore shorts in the summer and would ask me to sit on her lap.  I hated it because she used an epilady to shave her legs so when the hair grew back it was extremely stiff and spiky, so it hurt.

Juli and Grandma at Jake's Birthday party last year.

2.  Since I was a baby she always made spaghetti and meatballs every Sunday.  She wasn't an awesome cook but she nailed that meal every time.  She would also make a soup with peas and pasta in it, which didn't excite the palate, but it was just her thing.

3.  She would always make our Birthday cakes, and she would whip them too much that they were always dry.  When we were little she would wrap coins with money and stick them in the cake so that we had an extra little surprise for our special day.  Also, she made this weird cake with strawberry jello and whipped cream.

She always supported my Dad at his soap box derbies. 

4.  She had this painting in her house for years that I thought was hideous.  It wasn't until I was in college that I realized it was a copy of a Rembrandt.  I still think it's ugly.

5.  She taught us to golf.  She wanted to spend the time with us, so she would take us to lessons, drive us to the driving range and putting greens to practice, set up our season passes, and even caddy for us when we played in tournaments.  A lot of people would have a hard time keeping their cool when they golfed, me being one of them, but she always kept her cool.

6.She would tape Saturday morning cartoons and episodes of Saved by the Bell for me so that when she was babysitting me I had something to watch.  I usually would watch a show while eating a happy meal.

She had taped the Wizard of Oz for us when I was a baby and we watched it every Sunday for years.  It was so old that for years I thought Michael J. Fox was just some guy from the Pepsi commercials.

Both of my Grandmothers at my High School Graduation Party. 

7.  She would take me shopping.  We had that in common.  For Christmas and Birthdays she didn't want to just guess or surprise us with something, she wanted us to pick out exactly what we wanted.  This was before gift cards were as common as today.  She even worked at Fannie Mae during the holiday season so that she could have more money to get everyone something special.  Plus, she always purchased trinidads from work just for me because she knew they were my favorites.

8. Sleepovers!  My Grandma had been living alone since I was 6 years old.  She would invite Juli and I to sleep overs whenever we wanted. Sleeping over at Grandma's was awesome.  We could stay up late, watch MTV (which my family didn't have), and eat crackers and drink root beer floats at 10 pm at night.  Then in the morning she would never wake us up, she would let us sleep in.  I would wake up to the smell of a fresh pot of coffee.  I nor my family drinks coffee, but I love the smell of it, it reminds me of her. After that we would go for breakfast to Hardees and get biscuits and Gravy.  I know, it sounds gross but it tastes so good.

9.  The green silk pillowcase.  My Grandma had this green pillow case that was so soft and smooth that it just felt so cool on my face.  I loved it.

10.  Swedish pancakes.  Whenever my Rockford friends go home they always want Swedish pancakes.  I crave them as well.  After golfing we would always go to this dive in Rockford called, "Sams", that stunk of cigarettes and white trash, but they sure did have the best sweeds.

11.  She wrote me letters all throughout college and on my mission, sending $20 in each of them. I would always write back of course.  But I will say most of her letters consisted of her complaints about getting old.

12.  Watching movies with her as she got older was frustrating yet entertaining.  She would talk the whole time, ask what was going on, and then after the movie was about to wrap up she would comment that she had already watched it and didn't like it the first time.

This was taken before I was born. 

13.  I'll never forget driving her from her house to the airport then going through all the motions to get us on the plane and fly to Salt Lake City.  She was really confused the whole time and kept asking me why we were at the airport and where we were going.  It was chaotic.  But as a child I remember she would always tell me that one day I would be driving her around and taking care of her, when she got old.  All those years ago I never believed that time would come.

14.  When she would come to my house over the past few years she liked to go outside and play basketball with my son Max.  She thought it was amazing that he was so good at getting the ball into his little playschool hoop.  I would watch them outside as her old body would chase him around and pick the ball up for him.  She really was young at heart.

15.  Her phone number will always be 815-399-5137.

I'll miss you!

Love, 

Rachel

Salt Lake City

A few weeks ago we went down to SLC for the weekend.  My cousin Vanessa flew in from Colorado and the fam was all getting together so we thought we would join them.  We took the kids to a few places that we cannot attend while living in Logan.  We went to our favorite restaurant (Moki's)  got cupcakes at sweet tooth fairy, and of course went to the zoo.  The kids were amazing at the zoo they walked the whole way and loved seeing everything.  Unfortunately the Hoogle Zoo has a hill to walk up towards the end which they were so tired for but they were champs.

We never get to take pictures on the elephant because there is always a line, but no one was there that day because of the snow.

First attempt to take a good picture with Max......failrure.

Max had to thank the workers of Moki's for their good service.

Eagle's nest.

2nd attempt to take a picture with Max.....2nd failure. 

WE stayed and watched the polar bears, seals, and sea lions for awhile, but Dex was afraid of the bears

.

Max loved jumping on our hotel room bed. 

M is for Martin

Yesterday Max opened his book bag up after he got home from school and handed this to me.  He said, "I made this for you".  I looked at it and asked "who is Martin", thinking it was their class mascot or something.  He told me "It's Doctor King".  It made me chuckle.  I thought it was kind of odd and educational at the same time.  

Then Jake asked him what he knew about Dr. King.  He said "Dr. King said things need to be fair, and people should eat in restaurants."  It's funny what a 4 year old comprehends.  

Some Pictures From the Holidays

Thanksgiving was at my sister Laura's house.

We went to the Christmas lights at temple square.

Max and me.

Jake made a little wrap for Dex and he wore it around the house. He thought it was funny.

My little niece Olivia.

Max helped Dex open his Christmas present.

A Volcano!

Grandma came after Christmas to bring them all their presents.

Max said he wanted to help with the dishes, next thing we knew he had stripped down and climbed into the sink.

We had lunch with the family.  Jason kept the kids busy.

Max got his own lounge chair for his birthday.  I love those PBK chairs.

Monster's inc.

Last month was Max's birthday.  He turned 4.  We got him a Monster's University dvd on black Friday really cheap and Jake said it was for Max......but I really think it was more for him.  We never buy movies and most of the ones we own are tacky comedies from the 90's.  So we got him the movie and he actually sat and watched the whole thing, which he rarely does.  I am not a huge supporter of kids watching movies all the time.  There are so many other things they have the energy to do and I don't want him obsessing about cartoon characters.  We really try to limit the television viewing in our home for the kids and luckily Dexter seems very disinterested when Max is watching something so I couldn't be more thrilled.

Anyhow, we have watched Monster's U way too many times. I have the whole thing memorized.  But Jake borrowed Monster's inc from his brother and that only upset Max.  He wanted Monster's U!  The kid doesn't like change.  So last Sunday Jake popped in Monsters inc again and Max started watching it with us he made it through the whole thing and then something started at the end.   When Sully has to say bye to Boo and tucks her into bed, Max began to cry.  Jake and I both looked at him and he was embarrassed and didn't want us to see.   These were real tears and real sobs.  Not the fake ones he normally does.  He began to tell us that he didn't want Sully to leave.  I think he felt like he was Boo.  It was weird and funny all at the same time.  And for the most part Max isn't an extremely emotional kid.   He was sad up until he fell asleep.  

It's interesting to see your child grow up and change.  Even something so dumb like crying during a movie reminds me once again what he comprehends and that's all apart of maturity and no longer being a baby.  He's just not my baby anymore.........even though he still needs help wiping his butt!  

A Year's End

It's still hard for me to believe that 2013 has already passed us by.  Every year past 2000 makes me feel older and older.   This year was a huge milestone for me because I turned 30.  I feel the same but my body totally feels different.  For the first time in my life besides when I'm pregnant I've had to wake up to go to the bathroom.  That's the worse especially when your trying not to wake up your kids and it's 6 am and so close to their waking times. I found another wrinkle between my eye brows and it totally sucks!

Worst of all I had Epstein Barr this year which was awful just having but also made me hit a wall when it came to my baby weight loss.  Once I was recovered by May I've been working out usually 5 times  a week and haven't dropped a pound, except for the 2 I lost when I had the flu this fall.  And it wasn't worth it, blah!  But now I'm trying to watch what I eat and Jake got me a fitbit for Christmas this year which will help me more with that.  I've been trying to pursue more hobbies this year than probably ever before.  I'm no longer in school so I can't use the excuse that I'm too busy reading for classes that I don't have time to read anything else.  I've been trying to read more articles and books.  I've currently been reading L. Tom Perry's autobiography.  I became interested in it when I saw it on the New Arrivals shelf at the library.  He recently spoke at a regional conference held a few months ago here in Logan so I decided to read it.  It's funny how these things work, but it's actually helped me a lot.  I really was not looking forward to moving here, and it was a little tough at first and I was dreading the winter months.  But reading about this apostles life hear and hearing about his families history and even the pioneer heritage of cache valley forced me to like Logan and all the aspects of it that I had overlooked before.  There really is a rich history here and so many place to explore.

Jake and I were called as Temple Prep teachers.  I taught last week since it's the beginning of the year and I'm a bit intimidated.  The concepts are so basic but I'm not sure what people already know considering no one will answer any of my questions.  We just all need to warm up to each other.  I think treats will be involved next week.  I can teach Sunday school, primary, and relief society but temple prep is my Achilles Heal.  What if I can't answer a question?  The classroom will be so small who will help me fill the time.  Jake will be helping me, but sometimes I will be alone.  It's moments like this when I think of my Dad and wish he were still around to advise me.  Usually I would just call him and he would tell me how or what to say, so sometimes I have to just think what would Jim Giometta do in this situation?  And it isn't just in church callings but anything in life.    I wish I had asked myself that question when I got bangs in October.  They were hideous!  They've grown on me, but they just really aren't for everyone, including myself.

Max turned 4 a few weeks ago and he's become quite the little comedian.  We went to the doctor the other day and he was saying the funniest things to him, he's never wanted to talk to a doctor before, he's always been too scared.  Max also started school this year.  It's preschool and only a few time a week.  He still has to repeat it next year since he has a late birthday and won't be in kindergarten until 2015.  It seems so far away but preschool has been great for him socially.  He's starting to talk to other kids and he's been signing a lot.  Which I have never been able to get him to do.  The other day he told Jake while he was taking a bath, "I'm swimming under the sea in an octopuses garden", I guess you had to be there but it was funny since it was random and a Beatles song. He was really excited for any holiday or event this year.  He talked about his birthday for weeks and couldn't wait until it was Christmas.  He really is growing up so much and he's gotten really tall.  I worry about him less and less.  Being my first child always made it easy for me to watch and stress about every little thing he did.  Studying speech pathology and human development educated me but always made me aware of anything that could go wrong with his development. But he's doing great! I think sometime this year we are going to start trying to teach him to read, but we'll just take baby steps at that.

Dexter had an eventful year as well.  He started walking, talking, and had surgery on his finger.  He's a bit more adventurous than Max was, ever.  He is also my friendly child.  He is constantly waving hi to random strangers at the store.  Unfortunately, he's been a pain to take to church, he really just can't sit still, and I know you shouldn't wish that your kids will just grow up already, but I can't wait until he can sit with me and just read a book, but he's way too wiggly for that.  He's been sleeping really well and still takes one nap a day.  We kept putting off taking away his binky.  With Max we took it at 12 months, I hatted the thought of him using it until he was two.  But with Dexter something always came up so it made it hard to take it away, until we were in Salt Lake during Thanksgiving and he threw it on the ground somewhere on temple square.  That was his only binky so we just decided that was it and it was time.  He cried for a bit but now he's over it.  Dexter's finger healed perfectly, it's a little stumpy looking and we really have to take care of the nail so that it doesn't pinch his skin, but there's a chance it could fall off as he gets older.  Now our goal is just getting him conditioned for Nursery on Sundays and to not be so grumpy.  He definitely does not like to be ignored and he lets me know it.

Jacob had a good year as well.  We were talking about our favorite memories this year and I told him mine was when he graduated with his Bachelor's.  It was a huge milestone for him and something he had been working on since we were married.  He's currently working on his MBA which he will finish this June.  It's hard to believe that we are already half way done.  He got a job working as a T.A which has been really good for his schedule.  I couldn't really look for a job since Jacob's schedule is so ridiculous and most days he never knows when he is coming home.  We started looking for jobs so hopefully he will have one by this summer.  We've been able to see Jacob's family a lot this year which has been really great for us and the kids.  We're not too sure where we will end up when he graduates which could make it difficult for us to see them if it's far away.

My goal this year is to find a word and make it my focus.  This woman does it on a blog I read every week.  I'm just having a hard time coming up with a good word that could help improve my life.  I'm giving myself until Friday to figure it out.

I will post pictures soon!